The invention relates generally to autonomous robots. In particular, the invention relates to spherical self-propelled robots for autonomous remote locomotion by rolling along an external surface.
Autonomous robots have been developed for various purposes, including self-propelled machines designed for locomotion along horizontal and uneven surfaces. Additionally spherical platforms designed for ferrying persons into hostile close-quarter areas for reconnaissance, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 7,963,350 and for remote-control infrared sensing, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 8,768,548, have been conceptualized. These involve lower and upper internal carriages equipped with wheels that rotate along an outer shell of the platform to induce vehicle translation along the external surface.
Alternative ball-shaped robots include U.S. Pat. No. 6,289,263 to Mukherjee and U.S. Pat. No. 8,322,471 to Schroll. The former concept provides a central hub with spokes extending radially therefrom and masses that shift along the spokes to shift the robot's moment of inertia for locomotion. The latter concept employs a pair of counter-rotating gyroscopes to imparting momentum to a spherical housing.